Where\'s the wort? [was:Rebel Yell: Great Website]

Re: Rebel Yell: Great Website

In beer making at least, wort is the liquid separated from the grains after mashing. Since, in bourbon making, the entire mash is distilled without separating the liquid from the grains, I guess you can't call it wort, right Chuck?

Re: Rebel Yell: Great Website

there is no wort in bourbon-making

Chuck, can you explain what you mean here?

In malt whisky-making, ground barley malt is mixed with warm water. The mixture is allow to rest while the enzymes produced through the malting process convert the starch into sugar. The sugar is now in solution with the water and the remaining grain solids are considered waste, so the sugar-rich liquid is separated from the grain solids, which are discarded. This sugar rich liquid is known as the wort. The wort is transferred to fermenting vessels, where yeast is added and it is allowed to ferment. The fermented wort, now called the wash, then goes to the stills.

In American whiskey-making, ground grains--including a small amount of barley malt--are mixed with water and cooked. The combination of cooking and the enzymes from the malt convert the starch into sugar. This entire mixture--solids and all--goes into the fermenters and is still referred to as mash. The fermented mash then goes to the still--solids and all--and is then known as beer.

In malt whisky-making the wort is recycled several times to make sure all of the fermentable sugar has been released.

The term "wort" refers to the sugar-rich liquid portion of the converted mash, but since the wort is never separated from the solids in the American process, the term "wort" is not used.

Re: Rebel Yell: Great Website

In beer making at least, wort is the liquid separated from the grains after mashing. Since, in bourbon making, the entire mash is distilled without separating the liquid from the grains, I guess you can't call it wort, right Chuck?

Precisely correct, Jeff. Now why this is the case I'm not quite sure. Certainly the use of pot stills necessitates discarding the solids whereas they are actually a benefit in a column still. A pure liquid probably would go through the still too quickly.

Since this no longer has much to do with the Rebel Yell website, maybe a kind moderator will shift this discussion to a new thread.